Audi�s history is one of the most multifaceted stories ever told in the
history of the automobile. The Audi emblem with its four rings
signifies one of Germany�s oldest automobile manufacturers. It
symbolises the amalgamation in 1932 of four formerly independent
motor-vehicle manufacturers: Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer. These
companies formed the roots of what is today AUDI AG.

The company traces its origins back to 1899 and August Horch. The first Horch automobile was produced in 1901 in Zwickau. In 1910, Horch was forced out of the company he had founded. He then started a new company in Zwickau and continued using the Horch brand. His former partners sued him for trademark infringement and a German court determined that the Horch brand belonged to his former company. August Horch was forced to refrain from using his own family name in his new car business. As the word "horch!" translates to "hark!" in German, August Horch settled on the Latin equivalent of his name � "audi". It is also popularly (but incorrectly) believed that Audi is an acronym which stands for "Auto Union Deutschland Ingolstadt". Audi produces over 2 million vehicles annually at its main production site in Ingolstadt. Audi has another production plant in Neckarsulm.